Center brace filter and center plate assembly

ABSTRACT

A center brace for mounting within the center sill of a railway car in the area of the underframe over the center plate and where the body bolster intersects the center sill and to provide an improved mounting of the center plate on the center brace.

[4 1 Nov. 21, 1972 Lusink et al.................213/57 Hankins et al...............2l3/57 Blattner.......................2l3/57 Couch.........................213/57 ABSTRACT References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 5 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures Primary Examiner-Gerald M. Forlenza Assistant Examiner--Howard Beltran Att0rneyClelle W. Upchurch A center brace for mounting within the center sill of a railway car in the area of the underframe over the center plate and where the body bolster intersects the center sill and to provide an improved mounting of the center plate on the center brace.

Loree Elwyn Furniss, Casa Grande, Ariz.

pany, Columbus, Ohio Dec. 15, 1970 ..B61i l/l4, B6lf 5/16, B6lg 7/10 PLATE ASSEMBLY [72] Inventor:

Int.

Field of Search......

United States Patent Furniss [54] CENTER BRACE FILTER AND CENTER [73] Assignee: The Buckeye Steel Castings Com- [22] Filed:

[21} Appl. No.: 98,243

INVENTOI? ATTORNEY SHEET 1 OF 3 LOREE ELWYN FUR/W55 (9 .4. LL

PATENTED Nov 2 I972 CENTER BRACE FILTER AND CENTER PLATE ASSEMBLY The present invention relates to the underframe of a railway vehicle such as a freight car, and more specifically pertains to improvements in the structure between the vertical walls of the center sill in the area of the body bolster and to improvements in the mounting of the center plate.

It is now permissible for the center of gravity of a loaded freight car to be at a higher position than in the past and some railway vehicles have greater spacing between the trucks. Such railway cars often develop severe rocking at certain critical speeds. One consequence of such rocking movements results in the lifting of the wheels off the rails leading to derailment. Another result of such rocking movements provides increased wear on the body center plate and on the bolster center plate. The rocking of a railway car provides unequal reactions on the car body bolster when the support of the load shifts from the center plate to one of the side bearings and then shifts back to the center plate then onto the side bearing at the other side of the car body. Such shifting of the reactions becomes detrimental to the body bolster when the portion in the vicinity of the center sill is not properly braced. This shifting causes fatigue cracks to develop in the top portion of the center plate around the periphery of the bowl portion. The cracks develop on either side near the center line of the body bolster. The center filler which has for many years given satisfactory service develops fatigue cracks in the partial cross-walls as a result of the rocking of the car body.

An object of the present invention is to provide a center plate of high tensile strength which may be fitted into the bottom portion of the center brace so as to provide greater resistance to wear and deformation as a consequence of impact loads and to provide a higher resistance to fatigue cracks.

Another object of the invention is to provide a center brace for mounting within the center sill of a railway car to provide walls which resist the shear strains imposed by the central portion of the body bolster with the walls of the center brace spaced fore and aft of a bolster center line and approximately in line with the bolster diaphragm plates and thereby provide improved strength from one corner of the center brace diagonally to another corner thereof where the lines of maximum force are applied when rocking occurs.

Other objects and features of the invention will be appreciated and become apparent to those skilled in the art as the present disclosure proceeds, and upon consideration of the accompanying drawings taken with the following detailed description wherein an exemplary embodiment of the invention is disclosed.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a sectional plan view of a portion of the center sill in the area of the body bolster and taken on the line 1-1 ofFIG. 2;

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a transverse sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of FIG. 2; and

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the center plate structure and taken on the line 44 of FIG. 3.

Referring to the drawings, there is shown at 10 and 1 l the vertical walls of a center sill structure for a railway vehicle. The center sill is of conventional construction and includes lateral flanges 12 and 14 at the lower ends of the side walls 10 and 11. The body bolster diaphragm plates are indicated at 16 and 17. The rear end portion of a draft rigging for a coupler is shown at 15.

The present invention is directed to the structure which is mounted within and substantially fills the space between the walls 10 and 11 of the center sill in the vicinity of the body bolster and in the area over the center plate. In the embodiment shown in the drawings the center brace is formed of two complementary portions or members 21 and 22 welded to each other as indicated at 25 or the center brace may be formed of one piece. The member 21 as shown in FIG. 1 includes draft lugs 28 and this portion of the center brace has a vertical wall 29 which lies along the inner face of the side walls 10 of the center sill. The member 22 is similarly formed and includes a draft lug 31 formed integral with the wall portion 32 which lies along the inner face of the side wall 11 of the center sill. The walls 29 and 32 desirably extend towards the mid-portion of the underframe and beyond the center plate area as shown at 33 and 34 in FIG. 1.

The center brace is formed with shear walls 37 to deal with the stress imposed by the center portion of a body bolster. These walls 37 are spaced fore and aft the bolster center line and approximately in line respectively with the diaphragm plates 16 and 17 of the body bolster as best shown in FIG. 1. The walls 37 may be provided with openings 39 for weight reducing purposes and to facilitate casting but they are solid from comer to diagonal corner where the maximum forces are applied when rocking of the car body occurs. It will be noted that the top surfaces of the walls 37 are recessed as indicated at 42 in FIG. 3 to avoid interference with the weld area of the center sill.

Another feature of the invention is the provision of a center plate structure 46 which is formed of high tensile steel and which fits into the lower portion of the center brace. The center plate is provided with a vertical opening 47 for the king pin. The center plate assembly includes a rectangular shaped plate portion 48 which is best shown in FIG. 4. The plate portion of the center plate assembly is disposed longitudinally of the center sill structure as will be apparent from consideration of FIG. 1. The plate portion 48 fits within a cavity in the lower portion of the center brace and the edge portions of the plate 48 are welded by means of butt welds 51 which are applied at the fore and aft edges of the center plate casting. The center plate casting may be reinforced by means of radially disposed ribs 53 as shown in FIG. 4 and the center brace may be strengthened in the vicinity of the center plate by radially disposed webs 50. The center plate bowl is relieved at 56 (FIG. 3) on each side to avoid interference with the inside lower corners of the center sill.

While draft lugs have been shown as forming a part of the center brace it will be appreciated that they may be omitted and that the center brace may be formed as a one piece casting. These and other modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

What is claimed and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

l. A center brace and center plate assembly for the center sill structure of a railway vehicle comprising, a center brace within said center sill structure in an area of the body bolster, said center brace having walls extending along opposite inner faces of the center sill structure and fore and aft walls spaced from each other longitudinally of the center sill structure and spanning space between the first said walls a center plate structure including a rectangular shaped plate portion underlying said center brace, weld material joining the fore and aft edges of the plate portion of the center plate structure to said center brace.

2. A center brace and center plate assembly according to claim 1 including radially disposed webs on the center brace overlying and extending radially of the center plate structure.

3. The assembly of claim 1 wherein said center brace has a rectangularly shaped socket in the bottom thereof and the said rectangular plate of the center plate is disposed in the socket.

4. The assembly of claim 1 wherein the center plate is high tensile steel.

5. The assembly of claim 1 wherein the center brace is composed of (1) two complimentary castings each having a wall extending along an inner face of the center sill, a radially disposed web integral with the said wall, fore and aft walls spaced longitudinally of the center sill structure and terminating in a radial web, the last said radial webs of the two castings being disposed against each other and welded together to join the castings to form the center brace, a socket in the bottom of the center brace, and (2) a separate center plate comprising a plate disposed in the said socket, said plate being welded adjacent its fore and aft edges to the center brace. 

1. A center brace and center plate assembly for the center sill structure of a railway vehicle comprising, a center brace within said center sill structure in an area of the body bolster, said center brace having walls extending along opposite inner faces of the center sill structure and fore and aft walls spaced from each other longitudinally of the center sill structure and spanning space between the first said walls a center plate structure including a rectangular shAped plate portion underlying said center brace, weld material joining the fore and aft edges of the plate portion of the center plate structure to said center brace.
 1. A center brace and center plate assembly for the center sill structure of a railway vehicle comprising, a center brace within said center sill structure in an area of the body bolster, said center brace having walls extending along opposite inner faces of the center sill structure and fore and aft walls spaced from each other longitudinally of the center sill structure and spanning space between the first said walls a center plate structure including a rectangular shAped plate portion underlying said center brace, weld material joining the fore and aft edges of the plate portion of the center plate structure to said center brace.
 2. A center brace and center plate assembly according to claim 1 including radially disposed webs on the center brace overlying and extending radially of the center plate structure.
 3. The assembly of claim 1 wherein said center brace has a rectangularly shaped socket in the bottom thereof and the said rectangular plate of the center plate is disposed in the socket.
 4. The assembly of claim 1 wherein the center plate is high tensile steel. 